Palm Sunday: engaging our hearts with Holy Week

As this week unfolds, let yourself be filled with God’s love for you and then pour it back out into the world.

Pray with us

Holy God,

Thank you that you love the world so much you gave us your only son, so that we will not perish but have eternal life. Throw yourself into our weeks, Lord. When we wake and before we go to sleep, let your name be on our lips. Remove any barriers that stop us from spending time with you. Open our hearts and my minds, and help us to see the difference we can make in the lives of others.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

Tips to engage with Holy Week:

• Read the accounts of Holy Week from a different gospel or Bible translation than you usually would. While you’re reading them, ask God to speak to you and highlight sections to focus more deeply on. Continue to talk to God about what he brings up and how it applies to you and your church today.
• Listen to a daily devotion to help you to commit to spending time each day with God. It’s also helpful if you want to focus more deeply on a particular topic. You could use Tearfund’s Lent devotional podcast, which shares a bite-sized devotion each day with you.
• Pay attention to the world around you, so you can see more clearly how God is at work. If there is a particular country or issue weighing on your heart, follow the thread of that feeling. You could go on a prayer walk, either by yourself or with others, asking the Holy Spirit for direction on how you can join in with what God is doing.
• Pray for people whose Holy Week is going to be difficult. For millions of people around the world, this will just be another week of trying to survive. Pray that the holiness of this week will not pass them by, but that God will meet them in their need. Think of a place or situation that you want to see Christ’s light shine through, and spend some time in prayer for it.

If you subscribe to One Voice in Prayer – Tearfund’s weekly prayer email – look out for our special Easter edition of the email, which will be sent the morning of Good Friday.